CEL-FI QUATRA Solves In-Building Coverage Challenges to Help Increase Productivity and Safety in Texas School District
Wytec deploys cellular enhancement solution featuring CEL-FI QUATRA 4000; fulfills Laredo ISD’s safety and technical requirements for in-building coverage
SAN DIEGO and SAN ANTONIO – July 7, 2020 – Nextivity Inc. and Wytec International (Wytec) today announced that the companies partnered to help the Laredo Independent School District (ISD) alleviate inadequate cellular service and provide coverage within its facilities to address safety concerns. The cellular enhancement solution designed by Wytec featuring CEL-FI QUATRA 4000 from Nextivity, met all Laredo ISD’s requirements for an approved, network-safe, multi-carrier in-building cellular coverage solution. Wytec’s professional deployment services were selected based on the company’s local, Texas integration and affordable maintenance contracts.
According to the National Emergency Number Association, more than 80 percent of 9-1-1 calls are made from wireless devices in most areas of the U.S. In accordance with guidelines set by the Safer Buildings Coalition for location accuracy when emergency calls are placed from a mobile phone from inside buildings, Laredo ISD wanted to ensure that staff and students could make 9-1-1 calls from anywhere within its facilities in the event of an emergency. For example, in a scenario where staff and students are instructed to shelter-in-place, they must be able to call 9-1-1 to communicate their location to first responders.
“The CEL-FI QUATRA solution offers a simple, manageable system that is scalable, reliable, and carrier agnostic. The result is enterprise grade service delivery that provides consistent communications for all of our students and teachers while giving them peace of mind as they carry out their day-to-day activities at our campuses,” says Miguel Munoa, Assistant Superintendent of Technology Services at Laredo Independent School District.
Laredo ISD was experiencing dead zones in its facilities due to building materials such as concrete and cinder blocks that were obstructing cellular carriers’ macro signals from penetrating into and throughout buildings. “The areas that required coverage in this initial project at Laredo ISD ranged in size from 10,000 to 200,000 square feet. The district wanted a solution that could receive signal off-air from the cellular towers and amplify the signal for all major U.S. carriers. They also required the least amount of intrusive cabling and wanted a system that could be monitored in ’real-time’,” explains William Gray, chairman and CEO of Wytec International, a member of the Safer Buildings Coalition. “With CEL-FI QUATRA, we were able to design a cellular enhancement solution that cost-effectively met all of the ISD’s current technical and safety requirements.”
CEL-FI QUATRA 4000 is a hybrid Distributed Antenna System (DAS) that delivers uniform in-building cellular coverage. It specifically addresses the challenges of poor voice quality, dropped calls, and dead zones in large buildings. QUATRA delivers a cellular signal that is up to 1000x stronger than solutions based on older analog technology, offering a much larger coverage footprint. QUATRA uses category cabling with Power over Ethernet so there is no need to install additional power outlets for the internal remote antennas.
Nextivity’s engineering and customer service teams will provide support for all CEL-FI QUATRA 4000 deployments at Laredo ISD. “CEL-FI QUATRA 4000 combined with Wytec’s expertise in cellular solution design and safety requirements in schools give Laredo ISD a high-performing, cost-effective solution that enables reliable communication from within its buildings,” says Werner Sievers, CEO of Nextivity. “Our team is dedicated to providing the support needed along the way to ensure success for Laredo ISD.”
Laredo ISD is made up of 33 educational institutions including elementary, middle, and high schools with an annual average enrollment of 24,000 students and more than 4,500 employees. Wytec has worked with Laredo ISD to complete three schools since being selected in November. The Laredo ISD has requested additional schools to be designed and constructed following the successful completion of the three original schools.
After completion of the initial campuses, “The district immediately realized the benefits of this new system. The feedback from students, staff, and families has been positive. The district is now focused on complete deployment at all elementary, middle, and high school campuses which are tentatively scheduled for completion by December 2022,” concludes Munoa.
More details about the cellular enhancement solution designed by Wytec for Laredo ISD can be found in the case study posted here.
About Wytec International, Inc.
Wytec was founded in 2011 as a Nevada-based corporation, with its corporate facilities in San Antonio, Texas. Wytec offers commercial grade failover services, in-building cellular enhancement and citywide cellular mobility utilizing its patented and proprietary technology. Wytec is completing trials of its patented technology – the LPN-16 – in San Antonio, Texas and Columbus, Ohio to deliver citywide deployment of cellular services, to include private LTE services for cities and ISDs. Additionally, Wytec has completed in-building cellular enhancement solutions for NASA’s Johnson Space Center, the Fountain Place in Dallas, and the UMB Bank Technology Center in Kansas City, Missouri. Additional information can be found at www.wytecintl.com, on LinkedIn, and on Facebook.
